


Inparatus (Don't Let Me Down)

by onlywordsnow



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Domestic Fluff, F/F, Fluff, Future Fic, Sick Character, Sick Child
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-24
Updated: 2017-10-24
Packaged: 2019-01-22 11:49:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12480900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onlywordsnow/pseuds/onlywordsnow
Summary: Nicole and Waverly have a pretty good life, until their 6 year old son, Henry, breaks his armTakes place 8 years from season 2 finale canon, writer assumption on the year.





	Inparatus (Don't Let Me Down)

**December 24, 2024**

 

Stuck at the station far later than she’d wanted, Sheriff Nicole Haught makes her way into the house on a pair of heavy legs.  Her jacket isn’t warm enough for the winter air as she kicks the snow off on the front porch before she makes her way inside.  The sun is setting and it’s nearing 7pm, but at least she beat the rest of the crowd home.

 

Pushing the front door open, Nicole is immediately met with the joyful sound of Christmas music flooding throughout the house.  She doesn’t see Waverly, but she can hear her belting out the words to the Nat King Cole song that plays.  As she peels off her jacket to hang on the hook in the entryway, the door handle harshly slams into her back.

 

“Uh huh,” Wynonna mutters loudly, “I’m sure Santa will still be able to find you even if you aren’t at home.”

 

The breath evades her lungs as all noise is drowned out of her ears and replaced with the sound of boots stomping against the wood floor.

 

“Hey,” Waverly screeches as she rounds the corner, comes into sight with a bowl and spatula in hand.  Her heart beats double time at the sight of her wife, the ability to breathe staying for away from her consciousness.  She must be turning blue by now.  “Can’t you two do that outside?  You’re going to ruin our floors.”

 

“Yeah,” she finally chimes in.  She turns on her heel, boots still gracing her feet, and gives Wynonna a sharp look.  When her gaze falls to Alice, her resolve fades and she sweeps the girl up.  Her voice goes soft as she says, “You’re going to ruin my floor.”

 

Alice is nearing 8 now.  She’s lanky with dark hair, soft facial features that encompass both Wynonna and Doc perfectly.  They got her back nearly 4 years ago, when Gus died, and from that moment Nicole had been enamored with her.  Alice had managed to change all of their lives twice.

 

Tickling Alice and ignoring Wynonna’s huff from her right, she advances further into the house so she can approach Waverly.  Alice scream laughs.  She says, “Stop, Aunt Nicole, I’m going to pee on you.”

 

“Not again,” Nicole replies dramatically, ticking coming to a slow.

 

“I didn’t,” Alice argues, “You know I’m ticklish.”

 

“You get it from your Aunt Waverly,” Nicole says, setting Alice down on the floor.  Nicole hesitates at Waverly’s side as Alice throws her arms around Waverly’s waist in a hug.  The hug is brief before Alice runs towards the couch, flipping on the television with expertise.

 

“Hey, baby,” Nicole mutters, hooking her cold index finger beneath Waverly’s chin and tipping her face upward to kiss her.  Wynonna makes a loud gagging noise in her throat behind Nicole.  Alice mimics the sound with a giggle.

 

“Hey,” Waverly quickly replies, pressing a smile against her mouth.

 

“Where’s Henry?” Nicole asks.

 

“He said he was tired,” Waverly says solemnly.  Nicole pulls a face at that.  Henry’s been going to bed earlier, saying he’s tired.  She feels like she hasn’t seen him since school let out earlier in the week.  “Maybe he’s coming down with something.”

 

“Maybe,” Nicole absently agrees.  The door pops open and the boys make their way into the house, all having had the decency to kick the snow off of their boots outside.  Doc zeroes in on his daughter and gives her a large greeting despite her focus being on the loading of whatever game she’s picked out on the Xbox.  “I’m just going to run upstairs, get out of this uniform.”

 

“Would you inform your son that everyone is here while you’re at it?” Waverly asks.

 

Nicole nods, hand reaching out to squeeze Waverly’s forearm before heading up the steps.  Still being agile enough to take two at a time, she does spend a couple of hours a week working out, after all, she makes it up the stairs in a flash.  The sound of chatter downstairs is quiet, narrowed down to soft hums, and she stops in the doorway of Henry’s room.  It’s dark enough that she can barely make out Henry’s lump in the bed.

 

Henry, nearing 6, has never really been one for naps.  When they brought him home 3 years ago, they had to beg him to take a nap while they would have killed for one.  He’s always been high energy, which is exactly the kind of kid they needed.

 

She pushes off of the door frame and heads down the hall to the bedroom.  Removing her uniform and depositing it into the hamper, she finds a pair of black jeans from the closet to fit with the Christmas sweater Waverly laid out on the bed for her.  The sweater is an ugly green one, but it’s the price she’s willing to pay to make her wife happy.

 

Once fully dressed, she returns to Henry’s room and crouches down on the floor beside his bed.  Nicole slowly lifts her hand to his forehead to see if he has a fever.  He doesn’t seem to have a temperature.  Furrowing her brows, she smooths her fingers down his neck and lightly shakes his shoulder.

 

“Henry,” she calls softly, “Wake up, Buddy.”

 

“Mom?” He mumbles, yawn immediately following as he rolls over onto his back.  She grins as he stretches, knuckles pressing against the headboard.  “You’re home.”

 

“Yep,” Nicole answers with a nod, “And everyone else is here.  You feeling ok?”

 

“I guess,” he says with a shrug.  She doesn’t like his answer.  It’s evasive like he’s hiding something.  Henry’s never been much of a liar though.  Perhaps he just doesn’t know how to answer the question.

 

“If something’s wrong, you can talk to me.  You know that, right, Buddy?”

 

“I’m fine,” he says.  She watches Henry sit up with a tiny struggle.  Nicole tells herself that she’s overreacting and attributes the struggle to the sleep still pressing against his shoulders.

 

“Alice is downstairs,” Nicole says.  That doesn’t seem to perk up his sluggish movements any.  She sighs as she leans heavily against the mattress.  Adding, “On your Xbox.”

 

Henry moves a little quicker at that, swinging his legs over the side of the bed.  He’s wearing the same thing he’d had on when she left for work that morning.  Waverly made him get dressed so they could go to the city to buy Christmas gifts.  Nicole had gotten Waverly’s gift months ago, tucked it away somewhere she would never look.

 

They both stand up, stretching at the same time.  Trying to iron out the kinks in her aging bones, slight back ache from sitting in her office chair all day making sure all of the paperwork is taken care of properly before she takes a week off.  They’re going to Toronto tomorrow to see the Raptors play, but it’s a surprise for Henry and Alice.  And a little bit of an early birthday present for her.

 

Following Henry down the stairs and into the jumble of voices, she watches a slightly more energetic boy carefully as he joins Alice and Jeremy on the couch.  Her socks slide absently on the hard wood floor as she reaches the bottom step, her hand releasing its grasp on the banister as she heads towards the kitchen.  Her concern quickly fades at the sight of Waverly, a grin replacing her furrowed brows.

 

Waverly is in the Christmas spirit.  She has the entire kitchen decorated in Christmas cookies and delicious cooling pies.  It looks like she’s been cooking all day with the kitchen table set with assorted side dishes.  Nicole reaches for a black olive on the tray closest to the edge of the table and pops it into her mouth.

 

Sliding into the space behind Waverly, she winds her arms around her waist and leans into her back.  Waverly leans more heavily against her as she sets the bowl down on the counter.  Nicole has no idea what she’s been stirring but, as she peeks over Waverly’s shoulder at the contents of the bowl, she realizes it doesn’t look as good as everything else.

 

“Everything looks so good,” Nicole hums, only lying a little.

 

“Can I tell you a secret?” Waverly asks, smile present in her voice.  Nicole feels Waverly’s hands against hers only briefly before she turns her arms, that bright smile coming in the view.

 

Nicole nods slowly in response, muttering a sincere, “Anything.”

 

Looking cheeky, Waverly’s mischievous gaze looks up at her through long eyelashes and she says, “It’s all vegan.”

 

Nicole swallows a laugh, knowing that every single person in the house will be ready to grab their pitchforks and burn her wife at the stake.  Dropping her hands to Waverly’s hips, she can’t help but smile.  Waverly’s elbows press into her stomach just below her diaphragm, fingers coming up to play with the neck of the ugly Christmas sweater.

 

“Don’t worry, baby,” Nicole says softly, “I’ll protect you when they turn into ravenous animals and try to eat you alive.”

 

“We could all use a healthier diet,” Waverly argues, “Besides, I’ve been through much worse and survived.”

 

“Yeah,” Nicole hums in agreement.  Waverly’s fingers absently tap against her collarbones with the beat of ‘ _Grandma Got Ran Over By A Reindeer_ ’ for just the briefest of moments before she turns her attention back to the food.  Laughing into the back of her throat, she sweeps the hair away from Waverly’s neck and plants a gentle kiss below her ear.  “Can I help you with anything?”

 

“You can go sit that cute butt down,” Waverly replies.

 

Nicole laughs and says, “Baby, I’ve been sitting all day, trying to get all of that paperwork done so we can go tomorrow.  I don’t think I can sit anymore.”

 

“Just get out of my kitchen,” Waverly counters

 

Nicole raises her hands in defeat, smirk still on her mouth.  She presses a kiss to Waverly’s temple before leaving the kitchen, heading back into the crowded living room.  She recognizes the excitement of Alice and Henry as they play the newest _NBA 2k25_ \- Wynonna with a drink in her hand being impartial to the sides and Jeremy pouting over, classically, being outvoted in the game choice.  Doc doesn’t really understand the game of basketball, still, and Dolls is equally interested in the success of both players.  The reliability of all of these people, of their makeshift family, has really been a comfort after what happened to her over a decade ago.

 

She rests her hands on the back of the couch as she leans against it behind Henry.  She’s sure glad she wasn’t in the room to witness their argument over who was playing as the Raptors this time.  At least they have a few shared interests’ despite being raised practically together.  Although they had known for years they wanted to raise a kid of their own, and even had been trying to adopt one for a year or so, it was the return of Alice into their lives that made them fight harder.  Nicole has always had a soft spot for Alice.

 

Henry and Alice are halfway into the game, just returning from half time, when she feels hands press against her back and smooth over the expanse of it.  She turns slightly to wrap her arm around Waverly’s shoulders, pretty sure that, based on her height, she’s wearing those boots with the 3 inch heels, and Nicole briefly wonders how she even manages to walk through the snow in those things but absently attributes it to practice.  They watch them take turns scoring as Jeremy gets way too into the game, but Nicole focuses on the warmth pressed against her side for just a few moments.

 

“Are you guys ready to eat?” Waverly asks, looping her arms around Nicole’s waist.  Nicole bites back a laugh and it earns her a half-hearted glare from her wife.  She’s used to the vegan cooking by now, but the rest of them are hardcore meat eaters.

 

Pausing the game, everyone moves towards the kitchen where everything is set on the table in buffet style.  Nicole walks at Waverly’s pace, allowing her to lead them behind everyone else.  She braces herself to protect her wife in the battle.  Overall, she knows that Waverly will win the war.

 

Wynonna grumbles about the steak, or lack thereof, for a few minutes; Alice shrugs along but is ultimately unbothered.  Finally, getting everyone to scoop up something and take a seat at the usually unused dinner table, Nicole takes a special interest in watching Henry eat.  He seems to push the food around his plate, mostly, and hardly eats anything at all.  He doesn’t even get excited about all of the desserts Waverly offers him.

 

Nicole makes a note to keep an eye on him.

 

-

 

**December 25, 2024**

 

The entire stadium is buzzing with life as the teams return from their locker rooms.  Well, almost the entire stadium, Nicole realizes.  She glances over at Waverly who has her arms wrapped around Henry, one hand moving up and down his spine while the other grasps her phone expertly.  Nicole knows basketball isn’t really her thing, that she’s mostly just here for the rest of them who love the sport, but she appreciates her for being here nonetheless.

 

Henry seems to be asleep, eyes screwed shut tightly as he rests peacefully on his mother.  He is nearly half the size of Waverly yet he manages to look so small to Nicole in Waverly’s arms.  She absently wonders how long ago he fell asleep, how much of the game he’s missed when he was so excited about getting to see one in the first place.  Especially with their fairly decent seats thanks to Dolls having a few connections left outside of Purgatory.

 

Alice is on the other side of her, practically screaming in excitement with the crowd, leaning heavily against Nicole’s thigh.  She turns her attention to Alice when she feels a light tap just above her knee, the denim jeans tighter around her legs than she had remembered them being when she packed them.  They left Purgatory somewhere around 11 this morning to make it to their hotel in Toronto on time and give them some breathing room to make it to the game without missing anything.  Wynonna had been fighting tears, threatened Nicole’s life if anything happened to Alice or Waverly or even Henry for that matter, and Nicole took it in stride just as she has been for the last 4 years.

 

“What’s up, buttercup?” Nicole asks Alice.  She’s been calling Alice that since the first time Wynonna let her stay the night at their house, and Alice has taken a particular liking to it.  No one else gets away with calling her that.

 

“I need to go to the bathroom,” she whispers, like it’s some kind of secret.

 

Nodding in understanding as she settles her hand on Alice’s shoulder, she returns her gaze to Waverly.  With her other hand, she reaches over to Waverly’s knee to get her attention, but she doesn’t look up from her phone.  Her body doesn’t even respond at this point, a testament to their familiarity with one another.

 

“Want anything while we run to the bathroom?” Nicole asks, squeezing Waverly’s knee.  Her thumb slides over the knob of Waverly’s knee.  When their gazes meet, she can see a request on the tip of her tongue but she simply shakes her head anyway.  “I’ll have my phone, if you change your mind.”

 

Waverly nods and tucks her phone away, hiding it into the small space between her body and Henry’s.  She smiles softly, reaching out quickly for Nicole’s hand.  There’s a light squeeze that makes her hesitate, like Waverly will miss them while they’re gone, and she brightens at the thought that after nearly 9 years together they still like each other so much.

 

“Hurry back,” Waverly finally says, “It’s going to start back up and I won’t be following along well enough to explain what you’ve missed.”

 

Smirking, Nicole gives her knee a final squeeze before removing her hand from Waverly.  Feeling a hard tug on her sleeve, she pulls her hand out from beneath her wife’s warm palm.  She moves to stand up, but Waverly catches her bicep with ease, an arched eyebrow following.

 

“Won’t you kiss me before you go?” Waverly says with dramatic flair.

 

With a roll of her eyes, and a small laugh to balance it out, she nods whole-heartedly.  Ignoring the tug-of-war battle on her other side, she leans forward to place a chaste kiss against Waverly’s mouth.  Alice is starting to whine now, a very Wynonna-like gag coming out of her mouth, which prompts Nicole to frown all too quickly.

 

“I have to gooooo,” Alice groans again, “We’re coming right back.”

 

“Fine, fine,” Nicole grumbles.

 

Standing from her seat, she takes a last look at Henry before extending her hand to Alice for her to take.  She gives Alice a reassuring smile in hopes to ease her urgency, take her mind off of it.  They make their way up the concrete steps towards the concessions area, out of the roar of the crowd.  There are still quite a few people gathered at the concession stand for drinks and snacks, but the bathrooms don’t seem to be as crowded.  When they reach the women’s restroom, the line has dissipated and a few stalls are free.

 

As she hovers outside to wait for Alice, her phone buzzes in her pocket.  The screen brightens, eliciting a new text message from Wynonna.  She’s only slightly disappointed that it isn’t a message from Waverly, deciding to finally tell Nicole what she wanted.  She unlocks her phone and reads Wynonna’s message, “ _She better come back with a signed jersey_.”

 

Nicole shakes her head at the ridiculous expectation.  She can definitely get Alice a jersey, but an autograph is such an insane request that she doesn’t even know how that could be possible.  She types back her reply, “ _I’ll do my best_.”

 

She tucks her phone away as she hears the toilet flush behind her and steps away from the door.  Alice immediately washes her hands.  Although the kid has adopted Wynonna’s mouth from time to time, she still is well-mannered.

 

“Need anything else while we’re up?” Nicole asks, Alice’s hand wrapping around hers.

 

“Can we get a purple Gatorade?  I know it’s Henry’s favorite,” Alice replies.

 

Nicole smiles at how thoughtful Alice is.  She has always taken to Henry since the moment he came home with them.  They are closer than Nicole could imagine as she wasn’t particularly close to any of her cousins but, then again, she isn’t even close to her immediate family anymore.  Waverly and Wynonna are thicker than blood.  They’re Earps.

 

“That’s really nice, Alice,” Nicole says.  They head to the concession stand where there doesn’t seem to be much of a line anymore either.  Her eye catches on the screen in the top corner of the concession stand and she notices that the game has already started back.  “Look here.  They’re playing again.”

 

Alice’s attention is immediately caught on the screen as Nicole steps forward to order a Gatorade and two waters.  After paying and receiving the drinks, she hands the Gatorade to Alice while fitting the two water bottles into one hand.  She keeps a hand on Alice’s shoulder while they descend the stairs, finding their seats with ease.

 

Her wife sports a feigned interest the moment she returns, the arch of her eyebrow giving her away.  Waverly only dons the arched eyebrow on two occasion, the first when she’s being cheeky and the second when she’s lying.  Nicole can’t help smiling at the sight, at the way Waverly’s hands still on Henry’s back as she peers at Nicole over his shoulder.  Her mouth suddenly curls into a pout as she squirms beneath their son, like the weight is becoming too much.

 

“How much of the game has he missed?” Nicole asks as she sits in her chair, leaning close enough to Waverly that she can be heard without being too loud.

 

“Maybe half,” Waverly replies with a shrug, “The commute must have tuckered him out.”

 

“You want me to take him?” She says, reaching over to press her hands against his back.

 Waverly gives her a gracious look as she loosens her grasp on Henry.  Shifting Henry onto her own lap seems to pinch Waverly in the slightest, and she offers her an apologetic smile.  “Sorry.  He’s really getting big.”

 

“I’ve been holding him for the last half hour,” Waverly retorts, “I think my legs are numb.”

 

Nicole smiles lazily as Waverly stands, stretching her legs out a bit, and she reaches out to lightly brush a reassuring hand across her back.  Henry settles into her with an annoyed sigh, eyes peeling open so slowly that Nicole considers he might not actually be awake, just disturbed.  Her attention quickly shifts back and forth between Henry and Waverly.  She pulls her hand back from Waverly, leaning forward to press a hand to Henry’s forehead.

 

He doesn’t seem to have a temperature.  She sighs in defeat, sliding her hand around to his ribs and poking him gently.  Attempting to wake him so he doesn’t miss any more of the game, she tickles him gently.

 

“You’re missing out, buddy,” she tells him, “Alice got you a Gatorade.”

 

He slowly peels his eyes open, an annoyed huff tumbling out of his lips.  She isn’t really sure how he’s even been able to sleep with such a loud crowd to disturb him.  He tucks his head beneath Nicole’s chin, hand grasping the front of her shirt tightly.  Sighing, she wraps both arms around him and holds him closer to her chest.

 

“Henry,” Alice says; Nicole notices a tiny hand coming up to Henry’s arm, a light pat echoing against her chest with the movement, “Wake up.”

 

“Just let him sleep,” Waverly hums into Nicole’s ear.  Turning her head to look at Waverly again, she feels a gentle touch press against her shoulder.  She wants to argue that they’ve been planning this for months, say something about how Henry never really has abnormal sleeping patterns, but the words die on her lips when she sees Waverly’s eyes shining.  “I don’t really blame him for being tired.  It’s been a long day.”

 

“It’s so loud in here though,” Nicole mutters.  There’s a grumble behind them about not being able to see and Waverly tosses a glare over her shoulder before returning to her seat.  Nicole feels Waverly’s fingers etch across her back so slowly that she shudders beneath the touch.  “It can’t be a very fitful sleep.”

 

“He’s fine, baby,” Waverly replies.  Digging her chin into Nicole’s arm, she reaches further and pokes Alice in the side.  A yelp tumbles out of Alice’s mouth at the surprise and the weight against Nicole’s left side becomes a bit lighter as Alice leans back in her seat to look at Waverly.  “Come ‘ere.”

 

Alice jumps from her seat as quickly as Nicole would, quickly making her way through the space between Nicole’s knees and the chair in front of them to make it to Waverly.  The weight on Nicole’s right side lifts as Waverly sits upright and she’s suddenly a lot colder without either source of body heat leaning against her.  Her gaze shifts back to Henry, one hand coming up to push the hair away from his forehead.

 

Nicole really makes a stern mental note to pay more attention to Henry’s sleeping patterns.

 

-

 

**December 26, 2024**

 

She shifts slightly in her position and it jolts her body awake, a disturbance of sorts telling her that it’s beyond her control.  Consciousness slowly registering that her arm is still loosely draped across Waverly’s torso, her body warm through the material the long sleeve shirt she had stolen out of Nicole’s dresser.  Waverly is angled a little awkwardly, halfway on her back and legs strewn seemingly everywhere, one of them pushed between Nicole’s knees.

 

The mattress dips beneath her shoulder and she leans back, all of the way onto her back as her hair presses into the pillow.  She looks across the expanse of the bed.  It’s a California King that is significantly larger than their one at home.  Squinting in the sunlight peeking in through the curtains, she blinks rapidly to make out the form approaching her.

Henry climbs over her in his _Star Wars_ pajamas and settles into the small space now between her and Waverly.  Wordlessly, he slips beneath the blankets and snuggles into her side, face pressing into the crook of her neck as she slips her arm around him.  She lifts her other hand to his forehead and pushes the hair back off of it, still not feeling a spike of heat against his skin.

 

“You okay, buddy?” She whispers as she settles her cheek against his forehead.

 

He nods slowly, his hand pressing against her sternum and clasping the material of her shirt tightly in his grasp.  She feels a tickle against her elbow and glances over Henry’s back.  She sees Waverly’s fluttering eyelashes as she rolls over to face them, a tired smile toying on her face.

 

“Sorry, baby,” Nicole mutters softly, “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

 

“It’s okay,” she replies through a yawn.  Waverly presses into her arm, chest firm through the fabric of the shirt, and stretches her own arm across the pair.  The feeling of Waverly’s fingers etching across her torso causes a shiver to skate down her spine.  “You didn’t really.  It was this guy.”

 

The warmth of Waverly’s breath presses into her skin as she edges closer.  She feels Waverly’s fingers slip beneath the hem of her shirt, pads of her fingertips sweeping against her hip in soft strokes, and she lets her eyes drift closed.  The sun still presses against her eyelids, a bit brighter than before, but she smiles as Waverly’s fingers leave her hip to search for her hand.

 

The room settles back into silence for a few minutes before the bed shifts again, weight pressing differently into the mattress as it bows and causes a ripple to move across the massive expanse of it.  Peeling her eyes open, Nicole looks over at Waverly to see if she’s moved any.  Instead, she sees Alice behind her wife, palms digging into Waverly’s shoulder.

 

Waverly smiles as she releases Nicole’s fingers, pulling her hand back towards her body to roll onto her back.  She watches as she smiles too, Waverly grabbing Alice and pulling her tightly into the bubble between her and Henry.  Henry grumbles when Alice’s elbow taps his back, and Nicole looks down at him.  His eyes are still closed and his fist still has her shirt bunched, but the amount of tension in his fist makes her believe he never actually fell back to sleep.

 

“Morning,” Alice mumbles as she rolls around to face Henry.  Her tiny hand moves across him to press into Nicole’s chest just above Henry’s hand.

 

“Hey,” Henry whines.  Waverly tosses Nicole a look over Alice and Henry’s heads as she joins in on the party, reaching across the two bodies for her hand again.  Nicole barely sees the look because Henry huffs loudly in her ear and he shifts uncomfortably against her.  “Get off of my mom.”

 

“Hey,” Nicole warns quickly, “That’s not very nice.”

 

“But you’re _my_ mom,” he says.  Peering down at him, Nicole sees a rather large, annoyed look taking up the features of his face.  She’s never seen a look like that from him, ever.

 

“Sweetie,” Waverly hums, fingers coming up to push through Henry’s hair.  Nicole looks over at Alice and sees a sting in her eyes.  It makes Nicole’s heart ache for her.  “I don’t think you meant that, but I still think you owe Alice an apology.”

 

He doesn’t say anything but Nicole feels hot tears press into her neck.  She loosens her jaw and lightly shakes her head at Waverly, attempting to tell her not to press the issue any further.  Waverly arches an eyebrow in a challenge, clearly not agreeing on the matter.  Henry sighs, his hot breath sticking to the tears on her skin.

 

“I’m sorry, Alice,” he says slowly, “I’ll share my mom with you.”

 

“It’s ok, Henry,” she says, patting his hand.  A sigh of relief tumbles out of Nicole’s mouth.  Feeling Henry’s grasp on her shirt loosen, she tries to contain her groan as he moves.  All of his knobby knees and elbows and palms press into her rib cage as he situated himself to face Alice.  “I only have one mom.  But you have two moms and I think that’s pretty cool.”

 

“Yeah,” he absently agrees.

 

He nods and it presses the weight awkwardly against her bicep, pinching the skin a little against his mandible bone.  She hisses as she looks over their heads, noting that he’s now wrapped his arm around to Alice’s back and both of their eyes are drifting closed, at Waverly who offers her a small smile.  She can’t help smiling back, relieved that she gets to wake up to that beautiful face every day.

 

A few minutes pass before Waverly releases her hand again to crawl out of the bed, making her way to the hotel bathroom.  Haphazardly peeling her arm out from beneath Henry’s head and replacing the empty space with a pillow, she moves her arm towards her body.  She lets her eyes drift closed again, the stillness of the room engulfing her.  Hearing the toilet flush and the bathroom door squeak, she moves a little bit more in an effort to get more comfortable.

 

When the weight shifts on the bed to her right, she doesn’t even crack an eye open, just opens her arms for Waverly to settle into her.

 

-

**December 27, 2024**

 

It’s been weighing heavily on her all day, the way that something with Henry has been off.  It’s becoming clearer to her that Waverly doesn’t see it.  Perhaps she’s overreacting, but she’s trying to look at this objectively - through the eyes of a detective.  She huffs absently, tapping the toe of her tennis shoe against the floor.  She lays back on the bed, covering her face with both hands.

 

She’s probably just being paranoid.

 

The noises downstairs fades to a soft echo as Waverly moves about, the steps creaking as she ascends to the second floor.  Kicking her shoes off and hearing them clatter to the floor, she pulls her knees up and presses her heels against the edge of the mattress.  She scrubs at her face, promptly letting the back of her wrist rest in her forehead as she parts her knees to get a good look at Waverly entering the room.  Her wife offers her a suspicious smile, the effort lost in the space between them. Nicole can’t even manage a smile back.

 

Face becoming displaced with concern, Waverly approaches her lightly.  She feels Waverly’s hands press against her knees and slide down her thighs as she slips between them, resting her weight against Nicole’s torso.  Looking down at Waverly, her chin presses against her chest, the full view of the tilt of Waverly’s head settling into her vision.

 

“Are you going to tell me what’s going on in that head of yours?” Waverly asks.

 

Nodding slowly as Waverly maneuvers gradually between her thighs to push her legs down with both hands, she contemplates just exactly how to tell her what’s running through her head.  She drops her legs off of the side of the bed, letting Waverly push up onto the bed and straddle her torso before returning her heels to the edge of the mattress.  Waverly’s fingers etch up her arm, warm palm pressing against her skin until her hand wraps around Nicole’s wrist to pull her arm from her forehead.

 

“Henry,” Nicole starts, moving her own hands to Waverly’s thighs and letting them settle there, “Went to bed early again.”

 

“The holidays are exhausting,” Waverly tries to reason.  She feels Waverly rock back against her legs, hands slipping beneath the hem of her shirt to press into her stomach.  The light touch tickles her skin, making Nicole squirm slightly beneath soft, warm fingertips.  “It’s been a busy few days.”

 

“Baby,” Nicole mutters softly, “Yesterday, he was outright mean to Alice.  He doesn’t have a mean bone in his body but he was a jerk.”

 

“Nicole,” Waverly hums, “We’ve both said mean things before, and we are the nicest people in this town.  Sometimes we just can’t help it.”

 

“And Calamity,” Nicole replies, practically dismissing Waverly’s valid argument.

 

Waverly’s face twists into a small, mocking smile.  Tilting her head, again, Waverly’s nails scratch at her rib cage in an effort to tease her.  She shakes her head dramatically, saying, “Calamity?”

 

“She slept in his room last night.  All curled up on the foot of his bed.  She’s in there right now,” she says.  She squeezes Waverly’s thighs, hands etching further up as her thumbs absently sweep against the seams of her tight, blue jeans.  “She’s never slept with him.  Not once in three years.”

 

“You don’t know that,” Waverly counters with a light shake of her head.  Fingers splaying against Nicole’s ribs just beneath her bra, Waverly’s legs tighten around her hips.  “She’s a cat.  She does weird stuff all of the time.  I caught her trying to eat Henry’s sock.  She could be sneaking in there in the middle of the night.”

 

“She doesn’t,” she mutters.

 

“How do you know?”

 

“I know,” she says firmly.  She pushes up off of the mattress with the heels of her palms as she sits up, throwing her legs back over the side of the mattress.  Moving her hands to the small of Waverly’s back and bracing her carefully as she presses her chest against Waverly’s, Nicole tilts her chin up to look Waverly in the eye.  Her breath catches in her throat as she looks up at her wife, a rare angle that always makes her take pause.  “She hisses at him on a regular basis, baby.”

 

Waverly’s hands move across her arms and come to a stop on her shoulders.  When Waverly lightly shakes her head, Nicole sighs in defeat.  Maybe she’s overreacting, maybe she is.  But _maybe she isn’t_.  Henry has been sleeping more.  He snapped at Alice.  He hasn’t been eating as well as usual.

 

She’s noticed.

 

“Everything’s okay,” Waverly replies, hands moving to cup Nicole’s jaw.

 

“But...” Nicole trails off, slightly distracted by the way Waverly’s fingers are sliding across her jaw bone; she outwardly groans, croaking out a, “Waves.”

 

“He’s well taken care of, okay?” Waverly mutters, pressing closer to her, “Now let me take care of you, too.”

 

Nicole loses all train of thought as she nods in compliance, Waverly’s warm fingers tangling in her shirt as they slip down her torso.

 

-

**December 28, 2024**

 

Although sex had proven to be a distraction for a little while, her brain had quickly returned to occupying its time thinking about Henry’s odd behaviors.  With Waverly asleep, back pressed against Nicole’s side with her earring digging into Nicole’s arm just above the crevice of her elbow, Nicole’s brain has been quickly racking itself over recollections of the last two weeks.  She’s been trying to gather data from her memory bank of every single moment she’s been with Henry which, in conclusion, really isn’t nearly enough.

 

Before this week, he’s spent all day at school, him and Alice being picked up by one of them afterwards whether it be her, Waverly, Wynonna, Dolls, Doc or even on occasion Jeremy.  They usually take turns picking the kids up, but she can’t remember Henry’s teacher informing her of any irregular behaviors.  Did she even see his teacher over the last few weeks?

 

She remembers running into the woman at the grocery store.  Surely she would have mentioned it then.  But, if Nicole remembers correctly, she had been buying condoms and was so deeply flushed with embarrassment that she practically ran out of the store without paying.  Nicole had simply laughed, ignoring the awkwardness of the situation.  Being a lesbian in a small town has taught her a few skills she had never needed to know before.

 

Waverly’s body is warm under the mountain of blankets, a particular habit that she’s struggling to get used to even after nearly a decade.  Often times she wakes up in a sweat, too hot to touch, and an ache in her bones from her body working in overdrive all night.  However, keeping Waverly warm has been an honor in spite of the fact that she almost always is snuggled against her and radiating off a surprising amount of her own heat.  Sighing a little too loudly, Nicole quickly stills herself as Waverly moves against her.

 

A tired touch presses against her stomach as Waverly wordlessly turns to face her.  She presses her cheek against Nicole’s shoulder, a puff of air lapping against her jaw as Waverly fits into her side with such slanted ease.  Her arm immediately moves under Waverly, a grumble eliciting from her mouth in response.  Hips pushing forward, Waverly’s thigh presses hard against hers, a small stretch arching against her body as her wife elongates herself.

 

A growl presses into her neck.  The warmth of Waverly’s breath causes her to shiver and, for a moment, she hates her body for betraying her so openly.  Waverly wraps more tightly around her like she’s trying to rid her of the cold, but she’s already nearly sweating beneath the mountain of blankets.  She pulls her hand out from beneath the blanket, hair on her arms immediately standing to attention at the coolness of the room.  She welcomes the temperature change.

 

Waverly whines loudly, nose trailing softly across Nicole’s throat as she aggressively pushes her hand up her body.  A huff echoes in Nicole’s ear, Waverly clearly annoyed as her hand meets the cold air.  She feels Waverly’s fingers ghost down her arm in search of her hand, immediately entwining their fingers together.  The metal wrapped around Waverly’s finger is hotly pressed against the web of Nicole’s fingers, the tug on her hand subtle but purposeful.

 

Body tired but feeling wide awake, Nicole stares at the ceiling for a few minutes.  The moon absently highlights the blades of the ceiling fan, turned on the lowest setting and emitting a gentle breeze of fresh air.  She brushes her thumb across the back of Waverly’s hand, body immediately jolting against Nicole’s.

 

Sighing, she turns her head gently to tuck the crown of Waverly’s head beneath her chin.  She whispers, “I’m sorry, baby.  I keep waking you up.”

 

“Come back under the blanket, it’s cold,” Waverly replies, voice disturbing the night air.

 

She swallows her guilt, moving their entwined hands back beneath the blanket and settling them onto her stomach.  Waverly’s hand is cold now, and she releases Nicole’s grasp to press her palm against the sliver of skin between the hemming of her clothing.  She sucks in a deep breath, the contrast of cold against her warm skin, and it takes everything inside of her to remain still.

 

Hips on the verge of squirming, she holds her breath until the soft sweep of fingers across her waistline stills.  She starts to count, nothing in particular - the number of different guns she’s shot with accuracy, number of times she’s brought home a stray dog until they could find it a good home, number of days since Henry has eaten dessert.  Racking her brain for the last time, late November when she brought home that peach cobbler Mrs. Jenkins brought to the station for her as thanks for rescuing her cat, she gasps rather loudly.  No, that can’t be right.

 

Waverly’s nails dig into her skin, moon shapes denting the pale expanse as her wife’s breathing speeds up.  A loud groan echoes around the quiet room, beating against the window as the wind briefly picks up and whispers against the cold glass.  Waverly’s nails suddenly retract from Nicole’s skin, a grunt mixing in to the noise as it exits her mouth.

 

“Sorry, my love,” Waverly whispers, voice soft and desperate.

 

“It’s okay,” Nicole murmurs.  She uses the knowledge that Waverly is awake to turn towards her, pushing her other hand against Waverly’s hip.  Leaning into her while pulling Waverly close to her chest, Nicole presses a soft kiss into the corner of her mouth.  She mumbles something under her breath, mouth pulling up into a small smile.  “Hey, I keep waking you up.  I’m going to go in the other room.”

 

“Quick,” Waverly replies.

 

Nicole nods, briefly pressing her forehead against Waverly’s before releasing her.  She pulls her limbs in and scoots back off of her side of the bed.  She quickly looks at Waverly and sees her cocooning into the blankets like she won’t even be missed.

 

The room is cold and it immediately licks against the warmth of her skin as she pads her way out of the bedroom, careful not to make too much more noise.  Her climbing out of bed and doing a quick sweep of the house isn’t necessarily abnormal as she would typically seek some relief from the heat, but she doesn’t normally wake Waverly up so many times in a night.  She feels restless, too many thoughts running through her head.

 

She gets stuck in the doorway of Henry’s room, the soft blue neon glow of the lightsaber against his wall illuminating the whole room.  Henry’s obsession with all things _Star Wars_ is Jeremy’s contribution, 3 hours of babysitting while they went on a _Black Badge Division_ mission and Henry had been easily hooked.  A _Star Wars_ fan herself, Nicole had been happy Henry became so taken by it without having to force the compilation on him.  If Waverly has to pick her favorite Harrison Ford, she would have without a doubt said _Indiana Jones_ without blinking.  But, Nicole had always loved Princess Leia the most.

 

Advancing into Henry’s room with a tight squint of her eyes to block out the brightness of the lightsaber, she steadies her breathing.  In an attempt to convince herself she is overreacting, she lowers herself to the side of the bed and reaches out to press a hand against his chest.  Calamity hisses at her, a warning that takes her completely by surprise.

 

“Hey,” she grumbles in a whisper, “Knock that off.”

 

Her eyebrows furrow deeply on her face, confused at the outburst from the cat that has never hissed at her in all of their years together.  The sudden attachment to Henry is odd enough, tack on hissing at her and that’s something else entirely.  She swipes a hand in the air in front of Calamity’s face, the nonchalant roll of the aging orange tabby’s eyes all too prudent for Nicole’s liking.

 

“No more catnip for you,” Nicole warns.

 

She looks back at Henry.  He’s favoring one side of the bed, leaving a lot of room on the mattress in the space beside him.  Tucking her bottom lip between her teeth, she convinces herself to just crawl onto the bed in that excruciatingly small space.  Just for a bit, to ease her restlessness.

 

The bed dips low beneath her, mattress not really built for someone of her weight class.  It’s colder in his room.  Granted, he sleeps with a normal amount of blankets and she isn’t beneath one anymore.  No sooner than she lays back against the billowing side of his pillow does he roll over and press his face against her shoulder.  Unlike Waverly, his eyes stay tightly shut and he doesn’t wake for even a brief moment.

 

The rhythmic sound of his breathing floods into her ear drum, replacing any and all other thoughts in her head.  Her arm slips beneath his weightlessness, and she holds him to her.  She’d simply replaced one body with another in an attempt to ease her mind, and it’s somehow working.  Despite the fact that her legs are too long to fit in the bed and are uncomfortably hanging off of it, she feels like she can breathe a little easier.

 

She lets her eyes close and listens to the buzz reverberating in Calamity’s throat, a peaceful sound as the movement vibrates against her shin.  She turns her head gently, letting her cheek press against the top of Henry’s head.  A few minutes of peace go by before she feels a cold hand sweep across her forehead and tuck her hair behind her ear.

 

Soft lips press against her temple, one hand encircling her own palm resting against her thigh.  She squeezes her eyes more tightly together, only a warm spurt of air against her skin finally making her peel her eyes open.  Startled slightly, she turns her face to the offender.

 

“Come back to bed, baby,” Waverly whispers, “You’ll be all cramped tomorrow if you don’t.”

 

“What?” She asks, blinking confoundedly.

 

“You’re freezing,” Waverly replies, pulling Nicole’s hand to her chest, “Come let me warm you up.”

 

“Yeah,” Nicole exhales in agreement.

 

Reluctantly, she releases Henry from her tight grasp and returns him to his spot on the bed.  Standing up and fully stretching the building cramps out, she feels a warm hand wrap around her wrist.  She offers Waverly a tired smile, the corners of her mouth barely moving as she follows her wife’s lead back to their bedroom.

 

She climbs back into bed under the 4 blankets and, in a rare moment, sinks into Waverly, tenderly tucking her cold fingers under a warm hip.  A hiss ricochets throughout the room, but Waverly doesn’t say anything in protest.  She simply pulls the blankets up to her chin and wraps her arms around Nicole’s back.

 

As she drifts back to sleep in the warmth of Waverly’s embrace, she tells herself everything is fine.

 

-

 

**December 29, 2024**

Nicole has made it through about 3 and a half games when she finally looks at her phone to see how long Waverly’s been gone.  She left about an hour ago to drop Henry off at the homestead and she still isn’t back yet.  Sighing, she tucks her phone under her thigh as her game returns from halftime.  She doesn’t play the game very often, usually only with Henry, but he’s really getting so good that she needs some practice.  Frankly, she sucks.

 

Typically, she would busy herself when alone with some other task.  She would maybe tidy, but everything is mostly clean since they have been getting Henry into the habit of cleaning up after himself.  She would look through some open cases, but she made sure to leave anything related to work at the station while she took a week off leaving all of the worries to her deputies.  Which, by the way, is an extremely difficult task in and of itself to not check in with the station constantly but she had promised.

 

Calamity strolls into the room at the tail end of her game, jumping onto the couch and lazily tucking herself into the corner.  Once the game ends, with a heavy hearted loss to the CPU, she decides it’s time to put it up for the time being.  She flips the input of the television to the cable, a hallmark channel something spreading across the screen.  It’s still something Christmas related, and she discards the controller onto the coffee table.

 

She reaches over to tease Calamity.  The old cat, going on 13, ignores her for at least the first minute.  Slowly, Calamity responds to her by rolling over onto her back and trying to catch her hand.  The game is sweet, as though yesterday’s hissing had never happened.  She grunts softly when Calamity responds a little too roughly, front claws coming out and digging in to her wrist.  The cat stills when there’s stomping on the other side of the front door, quickly vacating the living room when the door finally opens.

 

“Hey, there’s my New Year’s kiss,” Nicole greets.

 

Waverly had wanted to get some last minute decorations for her New Year’s party she likes to host.  With the larger group and the kids, she somehow has managed to rope everyone into spending holidays at their house, which Nicole really doesn’t mind.  However, Waverly sometimes has a tendency to overcompensate the decorations and to extend invitations to a few unruly people that really aren’t appropriate visitors into their home considering her role in the town.

 

“Uh oh,” Nicole hums, standing from the couch as she denotes a particularly annoyed look on Waverly’s face, “That’s an annoyed look.  Did they not have the cute New Year’s glasses you like?”

 

“They did,” Waverly huffs as she rounds the corner to the kitchen.  Following her, Nicole immediately starts digging through the bags she’s discarded onto the table to put things away, in hopes of her elaborating.  “I had to find out from Wynonna that Jeremy isn’t coming this year.  Did you know that?  Apparently he’s been dating someone from the big city and he’s going to meet them.”

 

“The big city?” Nicole repeats, “I thought it was a guy in Calgary.”

 

“You knew?” Waverly pushes out, jaw slacking as she stares at Nicole, hard.

 

“He’s cute, for a guy,” Nicole admits, “I mean, if you’re into that sort of thing.”

 

“You saw a picture?” Waverly moans, throwing her hands up in exasperation, “Am I always the last to know?”

 

“Doc doesn’t know,” she says, “At least, I don’t think he does.  Jeremy can still barely form two sentences in Doc’s presence.”

 

“Doc knows,” Waverly says, “Wynonna apparently had to talk Doc out of inviting himself on Jeremy’s date.  He’s apparently not too happy about it.”

 

“Okay,” Nicole says slowly, “Apparently, you’re the last to know.”

 

“You’re supposed to tell me,” Waverly argues softly, “We’re married.”

 

“Oh right, I forgot that was in the vows,” Nicole jests.

 

“It falls under the loyalty category,” Waverly replies without missing a beat.  Nicole can’t help the snort that tumbles out of her as she fully turns her body towards her wife’s.  Leaning back against the table, she reaches out for her hips and tugs her in.  “This is some betrayal, honestly.”

 

“Baby,” Nicole says softly, pushing her hands further around Waverly’s waist as she seemingly gives in.  Her lip juts out just slightly, and it prompts Nicole to pull a hand between them to press a thumb into her chin while her knuckles press against Waverly’s throat.  She tilts her face upward, getting momentarily infatuated with the way Waverly’s mouth curves downward.  “Don’t do the pouting.  You know I can’t resist the pouting.”

 

“I just wanted us all to be together,” Waverly frowns deeper.

 

“But I’ll be there,” Nicole reminds her, “And these lips are going to be on yours until you just can’t take it anymore.”

 

“Okay,” she sighs, “But, right now, I’m cold.  So when you get back from getting the rest of the stuff from the car, I need you to come cuddle with me.”

 

“Yes, ma’am,” Nicole concedes, dropping her hand from its place tucked under Waverly’s chin.

 

Placing a chaste kiss against the corner of her mouth, Nicole slides around Waverly.  She catches Calamity by her shoes, eyeing the carelessly open doorway like she’s considering an escape.  The snow gleams from the sunlight, nearly blinding her with a particular ray of sunshine when she bends down to secure her boots around her feet.  She shoos Calamity away from the door who stalks away and heads for the kitchen.

 

Leaving her jacket on the peg, she rushes out to the car to get the rest of the bags.  It’s still a Jeep, Waverly is loyal through and through, but it’s much more appropriate fora couple with a kid.  They still have the Wrangler parked in the garage, keeping it up and running.  Waverly could never part with it.  When she looks into the back of the vehicle, she’s nearly knocked on her ass at the realization that it’s going to take a few trips to get everything inside.

 

She hoists as many bag handles in her grasp as she can get, the straps of the reusable shopping bags cutting into the circulation of her cold fingers.  She kicks the snow off of her boots before going into the house, quickly depositing them just inside of the door and running back out to get the rest of the bags.  She steps back and tells the car to close the back door of the care.  She stomps the snow off of her boots and steps just inside, closing the door behind her.

 

When Waverly rounds the corner from the kitchen, she immediately shivers like she’s going to get some sympathy.  Waverly’s smirk in return as she kicks her shoes off makes her offer a pout, one that is momentarily ignored as she watches Waverly climb the stairs.  Shaking her head at Waverly still being such a tease, she grabs the rest of the bags and takes them into the kitchen with the ones already brought inside.  She sifts through the bags to make sure everything that is necessary to be put away immediately is, and spots a rather large raw steak at the bottom of a bag.

 

Sighing, she tucks it away into the refrigerator.  Every once awhile, Waverly will buy some foods that she won’t even eat.  Nicole really appreciates the thoughtful nature of the gesture, but she’s happy eating whatever is put in front of her.  She turns on her heel and exits the kitchen.

 

She hears Waverly descending the stairs and extends her arms to catch her around the waist once she reaches the bottom.  Waverly hisses into her chest at the contact, her hands clearly colder than she had anticipated.  She says, “Damn, baby.  You’re going to catch a cold.”

 

“Then you’ll just have to take care of me,” she retorts, slipping her hands beneath the hem of Waverly’s sweater.  A hiss tumbles out into the space between them and Waverly squirms out from beneath her hands, rushing towards the blanket draped across the back of the couch.  “Come on, don’t you know bare skin is the best source of heat?”

 

“You were supposed to warm me up,” Waverly replies with a pout.  Wrapping herself up in the blanket, she sits on the couch and tucks her feet under her for warmth.  She has the big, fuzzy socks on that generates plenty of heat.  “Or did you forget?”

 

Rubbing her hands together as she follows Waverly’s path, she lightly shakes her head.  She says, “All better.  See?”

 

She presses her only semi-warmed hands against Waverly’s cheeks, cupping her face lightly.  Pushing her fingers into the crevice of Waverly’s neck, she bends at the waist with a smirk.  She lightly presses her lips against Waverly’s, pleasantly surprised when her wife’s hand pokes out from the blanket and her fingers wrap around the front of Nicole’s shirt.  She lowers herself onto the couch cushion beside Waverly, knee gently pressing against Waverly’s hip.

 

Pulling back, Waverly lets her hand drag down Nicole’s front and mutters a soft, “Come warm me up, yeah?”

 

Nodding in agreement, she scoots a tad bit closer as she manages to weasel her arm around Waverly’s waist.  It helps when Waverly leans forward to grab the remote off of the table, casually flipping through the radio stations on their cable before settling on something.  The music choice will inevitably lead to Waverly throwing the blanket off of her shoulders and dragging Nicole off of the couch to dance, poorly.  No matter how badly she dances, Waverly never complains.  She just giggles carelessly and that’s enough to encourage Nicole to keep doing whatever she’s doing.

 

In the meantime, she lets Waverly bundle tighter in the warmest blanket in the house, hogging all of the heat she can capture.  It takes a few minutes of leaning against Nicole’s side before Waverly sits up again, turning her back to the arm of the couch and throwing her legs over her lap.  Her now warm hands gravitate to Waverly’s knees as Waverly gives her a warning look.

 

She shrugs innocently, but a smirk plays on her mouth.  Waverly reaches for her hand, slipping her fingers into Nicole’s.  Marveling at how right they still feel together, Nicole’s smirk quickly fades as she absently thinks about how lucky she is to ever get a woman like Waverly to fall in love with her.

 

When she opens her mouth to say something on the matter, Waverly beats her to it with a, “Ran into Chrissy at the store.”

 

“Oh yeah?” She hums, snapping her mouth shut.

 

“She said her dad is-“

 

Phone vibrating in her pocket, Nicole sighs as she shifts to dig it out, “Hold that thought, baby.”

 

She looks at the screen and sees a picture of Wynonna flipping her the bird covering the whole thing.  It occurs to her that, at some point over the last few days, Wynonna hacked her passcode and changed the photo in her phone.  Groaning, she answers the call with a low, “Hi, Wynonna.”

 

“Nicole,” she says gravely.  The direct use of her name puts her on edge and she leans forward, Waverly’s knee digging into her rib cage just below her right breast.  She tosses a glance at Waverly but feigns a smile.  “Henry scratched himself like an hour ago and it hasn’t stopped bleeding.”

 

“Is it bad?”

 

“It’s just a small scratch but it’s just dripping blood,” Wynonna huffs, “Like it’s almost as bad as that time you got bit by the widow.”

 

“What the hell, Wynonna,” she barks, “He would die if he lost that much blood.”

 

Waverly’s eyes widen dangerously at that.  Nicole quickly pats her thigh, hoping to offer some reassurance.  Wynonna says, “Okay, maybe not that bad, but still.”

 

“Is he upset? In pain? Asking for us?”

 

“No,” Wynonna replies.

 

“Then he’s fine,” she says with a shrug.  She expels a breath, relief flooding through her.  She senses that Wynonna is mildly panicking, and leans back against the couch.  She says, “Do you need me to come get him?”

 

“What?” Wynonna says, practically offended, “Fuck off, Haught. I can handle two kids at once.”

 

“Tell my kid that I said he doesn’t have to put up with your shit and he can call me if he wants to come home,” she retorts.  The words have barely left her mouth when there’s a beep through the line and she pulls the phone from her ear.  The screen indicates that Wynonna hung up on her and she laughs, looking over at Waverly.  “Your sister was overreacting.”

 

“Doc told me she was surprised when she realized babies have hands,” Waverly replies.

 

Laughing, Nicole discards her phone on the table, telling herself that perhaps she too has just been overreacting.

 

-

 

**December 30, 2024**

 

She feels like she’s smashing the buttons just to keep up with a 6-year-old.  Something can be said for the advancements of technology and how quickly kids really retain the use of it, even faster than when she was a kid.  She grew up always having some kind of game system in her household, always having a computer nearby, but these days kids have one of everything.

 

And she is definitely one of those parents who gives in.  Sometimes Waverly tries to tell her he doesn’t need it, but Nicole just says ‘ _but I want it_ ’ and the argument is abandoned before it starts.  Even though Waverly knows the actual motive behind her words.

 

Henry erupts into a slight, evil laughter that bounces off of the walls as the final score pops up on screen - he really kicked her ass, but that really isn’t a surprise.  She needs to practice more, that’s for sure.  She keeps getting creamed at the one sport she’s always killed it at.

 

“Time to get ready for bed,” Waverly says from her spot at the dining room table.

 

Nicole looks over at her, watching as she sets a book down on the surface, nearly 30 other books spread out.  Eyebrows furrowing, she absently wonders what the hell Waverly is even doing.  Some new project she must be up to. It suddenly dawns in her that this is the first time this week Henry hasn’t gone to bed early.  Looking over at him, she spots his wide, pleading eyes begging her to give him a few more minutes.

 

She sighs, wanting to relent.  She can’t though, she knows all of the rules of parenting are a unified team really gets them places.  She shrugs as though it’s out of her hands, and says, “You heard her.  We have to put this away and get ready for bed.”

 

“She runs a tight ship,” he says softly.

 

Taken aback by his phrasing, Nicole stills in her movements as she casts a glance over at Waverly.  She didn’t seem to hear Henry, thankfully.  Assuming it’s something he’s heard from Wynonna, she writes it off as a onetime deal and chooses to ignore it.  She replies, “I’ll put this away and meet you up there.”

 

“Fine,” he mutters grumpily.

 

On the verge of making a decision that he can’t stay the night with his Aunt Wynonna anymore because he comes back with an attitude, Nicole decides to ignore that, too.  She watches as he hops off of the couch and trudges up the stairs.  Looking over at Waverly again who is thoroughly engrossed in a different text than just a few minutes ago, she feels a small smile tug at the corners of her mouth.  Waverly’s hair is framing her face beautifully, space between her eyebrows clenched tightly as she writes something down in a notebook.  For a moment, she tries to guess what Waverly is studying but decides against it.

 

She quickly returns to her task of putting the game away with a shake of her head, trying to push Henry’s attitude away from the forefront of her mind.  She isn’t sure how she might have reacted if Waverly had heard him; she’s never reacted well to people speaking harshly to her wife.  She turns the television off and hides the controllers away, where Calamity can’t find them, and turns to head up the stairs.

 

“Hey,” Waverly says, halting her in her tracks, “You might want to get ready for bed, too.”

 

Looking over at Waverly, she sees a sparkle on her face as she casts a glance over in her direction.  She shakes her head, a smirk toying on her mouth.  She has half a mind to tell Waverly she should probably do the same but leaves the implication be.

 

She makes her way up the stairs, momentarily peeking in on Henry to be sure he’s actually doing what Waverly told him to do.  Continuing to the bedroom, she grabs a change of clothes to put on for bed and heads to the bathroom.  She begins brushing her teeth when she hears a rustling in the bedroom.  Looking around the corner, she sees Waverly settle a book or two on the nightstand.

 

“Mommy,” Henry whines, crossing the threshold into the bedroom with only a pair of his Star Wars pajama pants on, “My legs hurt.”

 

“It’s just growing pains, sweetie,” Waverly murmurs.  Nicole keeps brushing her teeth as she watches Waverly open her arms for Henry.  She picks him up with ease, her bicep muscles flexing, and sets on the edge of the bed.  “I bet if you went to sleep, the pain would go away.”

 

“Can I sleep with you?” He mumbles.

 

Pausing in her brush strokes, Nicole watches as Waverly nods slowly and she immediately knows that whatever Waverly had planned is shelved for later.

 

-

 

**December 31, 2024**

She sighs, the weight of the day resting heavily on her shoulders.  She had blinked for one second, just really quick, and lost complete control of everything.  Now, they’re sitting in the emergency room and Henry has a broken arm.  Of course she had panicked, abandoning all of her police officer instincts, and Waverly had been forced to remain level headed.

 

Waverly had driven them to the hospital at a normal speed, obeying all of the traffic laws, while Henry sat in the back seat cool as a cucumber.  On the other hand, Nicole’s vision was so blurry that she couldn’t even make out stop lights in front of her.  That was nearly 4 hours ago.

 

Gripping the armrest of her chair tightly, Nicole’s knuckles are turning white.  Whiter.  Her grasp is so tight as she holds her breath, looking over at her wife and son as they sit calmly on the patient table.  Waverly’s hand is in Henry’s hair, lightly brushing through the blonde strands at the back of his neck.  His golden hair is beginning to fade into brown.

 

“Nicole,” Waverly says gently, “It isn’t your fault.”

 

“Yeah, Mom,” Henry chimes in, “You can draw a cat on my cast.”

 

He lifts up his arm, the green color far too Christmasy for a holiday that has already passed.  She hadn’t been paying attention.  Or maybe she had actually watched the entire thing unfold without being able to utter a single word of warning.  She had simply rapidly blinked as he tripped over a skateboard left in the yard before it had snowed heavily, his arm twisting the wrong direction.

 

“A cat?” She slowly repeats.

 

Waverly drops her hand from Henry’s head and drops onto the floor.  Crossing the room, she extends both hands and settles them on Nicole’s shoulders.  She’s blocking the view to the outside world, of Henry, forcing Nicole to train both eyes on her.  She swallows thickly as Waverly’s knees push between hers.

 

“You’re a good mom-“

 

“Best mom,” Henry echoes.

 

“Best mom,” Waverly corrects herself, pushing her fingers to the back of Nicole’s neck and entwining her fingers, “These things happen.  You really couldn’t have done anything to stop it.”

 

“It was my skateboard,” Henry reminds her.

 

“Henry’s skateboard,” Waverly repeats, like they’re in on this together, “Not Mom’s skateboard.”

 

“Mom’s yard,” Nicole grumbles.

 

“Mom’s yard, Henry’s skateboard, nature’s snow,” Waverly says with a dismissive eye roll, “These things happen.  Mom has that sweet, sweet insurance to cover it.”

 

“Yes,” Nicole admits with a sigh of relief, “That government insurance.”

 

With a firm nod, Waverly turns her entire body and lowers herself down into Nicole’s lap.  She barely has enough time to register what’s happening and move her hands out of the way.  The fingers sliding across her neck and coming to a stop on her shoulder cause a shiver to skate down her spine.  Her arms absently circle Waverly’s waist, holding her tightly as Nicole finally looks around her at Henry.

 

“Draw something cool on my cast,” he says, lifting the green bandage into the air.  Throwing a glance back at Waverly, who is offering her a very tight and very poignant smile, she finally allows her shoulders to relax.  “Please don’t draw Calamity.  She hates me.”

 

“See?” Nicole whispers, harshly.

 

Just then, the curtain to the room peels back enough that a doctor steps through with a nurse in tow.  They’ve been gone for at least 20 minutes, getting discharge papers together.  He looks sharply at the pair, gaze quickly narrowing, seemingly ignoring Henry’s presence at this point.

 

“Which of you is Henry’s mother?” He asks.

 

Nicole feels a heat rise in her chest - annoyance, anger - at the idea that someone could, still, be so dismissive of what’s obviously right before them.  Their last name is all the same.  Waverly’s perched in her lap like more than one chair isn’t necessary.  How is that a question that still gets asked?  And when Waverly leaves Nicole’s lap as she pushes to her feet, she promptly stands defensively with her hands settling on either of Waverly’s hips.

 

“We both are,” she answers over Waverly’s shoulder before her wife can sweetly say anything.

 

Waverly has never been unkind in regards to this type of question.  Always polite smiles and 100% certainty, never afraid to be herself or love so openly.  Nicole has, on occasion, wished to have her courage so through and through.  Instead, she had to work up to it.

 

“Right, of course,” he says with a slight apologetic tilt of the head, “Can I speak to you outside?”

 

Nicole’s brows furrow on instinct.  The ‘ _walls_ ’ are literally a sheet to separate them.  Stepping outside, removing Henry from her sight, doesn’t really seem all that productive overall.  However, looking down at Waverly and seeing the fear settle into her jaw, she releases the hold on her hips to step to the side.  Slipping her hand around Waverly’s and threading their fingers together, she follows the man, only an inch taller than her.

 

Once outside, Henry out of her line of vision, she gives him a stern look in hopes of showing her displeasure of this request.  Waverly’s fingers are loose in hers, her own grasp loosening at the realization that perhaps she is holding on a little too tightly.  The on-call doctor looks at her, then at Waverly, then back to her, not seeming to know who to address.  He clearly thought this was easier when he believed only one of them was Henry’s mother.  Preemptively, her nerves begin reacting, a small vibration beginning to course through her.

 

“We got Henry’s blood test results back from the lab,” he starts, eyes darting between them once again, “And, I’m sorry to inform you, his white blood cell count is low.”

 

“What does that mean?” Waverly asks.  Nicole’s lips purse tightly together in response, words beginning to escape her.

 

“The oncologist will be down to speak with you the first moment she’s free,” he reiterates.  Nicole loosens her hold on Waverly’s hand completely, racking her brain for what exactly it is an oncologist does.  She should have paid attention more in biology.  “I want to refer you to someone who specializes in leukemia for children and-“

 

“Leukemia?” She interjects, “He broke his arm.”

 

“Misses Haught,” he says, eyes flitting back and forth between them, “I think it’s best you speak to the oncologist.  She is better suited to answer any of your questions.  She will be down shortly.”

 

“Fine,” she grounds out.

 

He gives her, them, those sad doctor eyes that try to offer sympathy and reassurance but isn’t properly conveyed with just a look.  She growls into the back of her throat as he leaves, Waverly’s hand leaving hers all too quickly.  She feels a wave of relief hit her when a pair of arms circle her waist and Waverly leans into her, immediately responding by sliding her arms around her wife’s shoulders.

 

They stand there for a minute as it sinks in, harsh and unkind.  Waverly’s tears are silent, but they soak into her shirt like they are the fattest tears anyone has ever cried.  She sucks in a deep breath, gathering her emotions up into this little space inside of her and locking it away.  She tilts her head back, looking straight up as she throws a prayer into the universe mostly because it seems appropriate, and rests her chin on the crown Waverly’s head.  That quickly becomes uncomfortable and she moves to press her cheekbone into Waverly’s temple.

 

“What’s going on?” Henry asks, peeling the curtain back even more and exposing the not very secluded area to the emergency room.  “Why are you crying?  It’s just a broken arm.  Mommy, why are you crying?”

 

“Buddy,” Nicole hums, reluctantly releasing Waverly to kneel down and look Henry more squarely in the eye, “We gotta talk.”

 

“I’ll pick up my skateboard, I promise,” Henry says all too quickly, “I’ll be better.  Please, Mommy, stop crying.”

 

Nicole sighs, angling her body awkwardly to look back over her shoulder at Waverly.  She hates those fat tears as much as Henry does, hates the way her perfectly placed eyeliner is beginning to smear because of them.  She looks beautiful.  Waverly has always been able to beautifully pull off the smeared make up look.  Nicole knows that she could never.

 

Looking back at Henry, she reaches out and circles his wrist, the one not wrapped up in a cast, with her hand.  She shakes her head gently, wishing she could comfort her wife for just a moment longer before having to answer questions she doesn’t even know how to answer.  God, Waverly’s the researcher.  Give her a few days, she’ll have all of the answers.

 

“It’s not the skateboard,” she says, somehow feigning a smile, “It’s not the broken arm.  Mommy’s crying because she loves you.”

 

“But I’m fine,” he says dramatically.

 

It stings a little, just hard enough to drawn out the ache in her chest at the sight of Waverly crying.  He isn’t fine, and he doesn’t even know it yet.  He’s more like her than she ever could have imagined he would be.  She almost belts out an ironic laugh but swallows it before it can fall out.  If she laughs right now, Waverly would probably never let her live it down.  Once this nightmare was all over.

 

“Let’s give her a few minutes to collect herself, okay?” She asks, giving his arm a squeeze.  The last thing in the world she wants is to leave Waverly in the hallway to cry alone, but she knows that Henry can’t see her cry for any second longer.  God, he panics as badly as she does.

 

“No,” Henry says suddenly, definitively, “We can’t just leave her while she’s crying.”

 

Nicole swallows.  He’s right.  She can’t just leave her.  She isn’t even sure she would have been able to if she had tried.  She nods in agreement, “You’re right.”

 

Releasing her hold on Henry’s arm and standing upright, Nicole immediately drapes an arm across Waverly’s shoulders.  Waverly’s tears are much smaller now, her hands lifting to her cheeks to dab at the wet spots.  They step forward together, without rhyme or reason, hiding haphazardly on the other side of the curtain and away from the bustle around them.

 

“I can’t believe you were going to leave me alone to cry in the hallway,” Waverly says, slight tinge of playfulness in her voice as she pushes at Nicole’s shoulder.  She steps out from under her arm and away from her warmth.  Leaning down to lift Henry into the air, closer to her body, a feat that is an extreme accomplishment anymore.  She presses a kiss to Henry’s cheek and says, “My hero.”

 

Looking at them, she suddenly realizes that Waverly might not let him go unless he’s pried from her hands now.  She sees the guilt there, in her eyes, or the lack of getting to see her eyes, rather.  Nicole had noticed something was off but Waverly had denied it.  She’s never going to let herself live that down.

 

Feeling tears cloud her vision again, she blinks rapidly to keep them at bay.  She can’t cry now.  She has to be strong.  However, when the oncologist comes down a few minutes later the air around her is so hollowed out that she doesn’t hear a word.

 

She drives home, only able to think about what might happen to Henry, and it isn’t good.

**Author's Note:**

> Just a few notes.
> 
> -I know this is a tall order and a somewhat difficult subject. Just know this, I am not going to put in my time and energy to actually kill a character. If I were to kill a character, the story would start directly after the death.   
> -The subject is not necessarily the child being sick, but how the parents deal with the child being sick. As someone who grew up in a household with a sick child, I was an observer to my parents adapting to this. Even though, by the time I was born, they already had a pretty steady life in juggling a sick kid.   
> -Lastly, the story taking place 8 years in the future will allow me to take some kind of magical ownership on how medicine will work. (Hint: maybe won't be much different in reality, but I may actually handle the treatment differently than what would be considered real life.)


End file.
